President Angela Sasso gives a special thank you to our Board Members
It’s just around the corner! Before you know it, we will have all gathered for CLI8. Close to 400 attendees will be present in Edinburgh, Scotland for 4 days of stimulating presentations, conversation and learning. As President of Critical Link International, I want to thank the two Board members that have represented CLI on the CLI8 organizing committee – Elizabeth Abraham and Bonnie Heath. Both Elizabeth and Bonnie will be stepping down from the CLI Board of Directors this year after having dedicated their time and energy for years to the growth and evolution of CLI. Bonnie will be stepping down from her position as Past President and has been a critical member of the CLI Board since 2003, well before her being elected as President in 2010, and guided the shift from CL Canada to CL International. Thank you Bonnie. Elizabeth Abraham joined the CLI Board of Directors in 2010, at the cusp of the organization’s change and despite some personal challenges, has continued to work tirelessly for the organization. I thank you both and we will miss you.
Although Elizabeth and Bonnie were the official representatives to the CLI8 organizing committee, the work did not stop with them. I would like to thank Kiran Malli, our Treasurer, for picking up some substantial tasks such as guiding the process for Expressions of Interest and the Request for Proposals for Critical Link 9 (host will be announced at CLI8) overseeing the AGM and the Strategic Planning, in addition to her regular Treasurer duties. Thank you to all.
Be sure to find us at the Critical Link table and to join us at our Annual General Meeting to find out more about KLIC – the KnowledgeLinkIC – a global information hub for interpreting in the community. KLIC was developed to promote free exchange of International Council for the Development of Community Interpreting information and research, foster the growth of studies in the field, and increase the visibility of academic activities and contributions internationally. Thank you to Michal Schuster and Lluis Baixauli Olmos as the Research and Development Committee team members that brought KLIC to fruition.
In addition to those Board members mentioned here, I would also like to thank Maria Aguilar-Solano, Christopher Stone, Pascal Rillof and Naoko Ono for their ongoing work and support. While many of our current Board members will continue to stand, there are a few positions to fill at the upcoming AGM. To that end, Critical Link is seeking nominations for the Board of Directors and we are asking you, our membership, to nominate yourselves or a colleague. We have already received several submissions and the Executive Committee will be making a final decision before the CLI AGM on Thursday, June 30. Consider becoming a more active member of the CLI community.
As a final note, I hope that you have all had an opportunity to comb through the Conference Program and have started planning your conference strategy. There are so many exciting presentations that it is always an exciting experiment trying to fit it all in, and also save time for the networking. I would like to thank all of the members of the Herriot-Watt Organizing Committee, and in particular Christine W L Wilson, Chair of Critical Link 8 Organizing Committee, for their hard work and time towards coordinating yet another wonderful CLI experience.
…until we meet in Scotland